The latest update for Destiny 2, Episode Heresy, brings an exciting array of storylines and enhancements. Notably, it introduces three new subclass Aspects tailored for each of the game’s classes: Storm’s Keep for Titans, Ionic Sentry for Warlocks, and On the Prowl for Hunters. These additions might initially appear underwhelming; however, they significantly transform gameplay, offering Guardians fresh ways to explore their power fantasies. Players can obtain these Aspects by interacting with Ikora at the Tower.
In this article, we will discuss optimal builds for each class that effectively pair these new Aspects, as well as viable alternatives in exotic armor options.
If you find yourself without the exotic armor discussed, you can focus on obtaining an Exotic engram through Master Rahool in the Tower. Acquiring specific pieces may require a rank reset and an Exotic Cipher.
1 Hunters
Now You See Me…
The new Void Aspect, On The Prowl, caters to the assassin fantasy that many Void Hunters crave. This Aspect emphasizes stealth and allows players to effortlessly navigate chaotic battles, providing an advantage for themselves and their teammates.
When On the Prowl is active, you’ll mark a nearby enemy as a priority target for you and your team. Successfully defeating this target releases a weakening cloud (akin to a smoke bomb), rendering you and your allies invisible as you move through it. Additionally, you’ll gain enhanced ability energy, reload speed, and stability for a limited time upon the target’s demise.
To activate On The Prowl, you’ll first need to achieve invisibility. While the Trapper’s Ambush and Vanishing Step offer straightforward routes to invisibility, we recommend using Stylish Executioner, which grants invisibility upon eliminating any Void-debuffed enemy (Weakened, Suppressed, or Volatile).
Complement your assassin approach with the following Fragments:
- Echo of Obscurity: Gain invisibility from finishing off enemies.
- Echo of Harvest: Generate Orbs of Power and Void Breaches upon defeating weakened enemies.
- Echo of Starvation: Activate Devour by collecting Orbs of Power or Void Breaches.
- Echo of Persistence: Prolong the effects of Void buffs (like invisibility, overshield, and Devour).
- Echo of Undermining: Weaken foes with grenade damage.
You can use any grenade, but Scatter Grenades yield significant burst damage. In terms of melee options, Smoke Bomb remains the sole choice and should be used to initiate engagements. Equipping Gambler’s Dodge is crucial for maximizing Smoke Bomb availability.
With the choice of Shadowshot, I prefer Deadfall for its extended duration and ability to tether multiple enemies. Moebius Quiver is ideal for focused DPS scenarios.
… Now You Don’t
This strategy pairs seamlessly with the Gyrfalcon’s Hauberk, an exceptional exotic armor piece for Hunters. This chest armor enhances your Void weapons, granting Volatile Rounds when you break invisibility through your attacks. Moreover, it provides bonus damage and overshields to you and allies when finishing off enemies while invisible.
If invisibility expires without an attack, Volatile Rounds are not granted. You must initiate an attack to harness their effects.
This build focuses on the Void element, requiring optimal Void weapons. Here, Hard Light shines with its “The Fundamentals”perk, increasing damage every time a Void debuff is applied or a Void Breach is collected. With this setup, you’ll maintain a nearly permanent damage buff while wielding Hard Light.
Hard Light is accessible, available for purchase from Xur on weekends or through rare drops.
Your offensive pattern begins with a strategically placed smoke bomb, effectively weakening an enemy and granting you invisibility upon elimination. Then, mark another target; the subsequent kill will drop a smoke cloud that further weakens nearby foes. Even without a weakness, Volatile Rounds will activate, keeping you invisible and ensuring a continuous cycle of Void debuffs and stealth in battle.
This creates a dynamic feedback loop of invisibility and power debuffs,
Alternatives
If you don’t possess Gyrfalcon’s Hauberk or Hard Light, consider these substitutes:
- Omnioculus awards a second smoke bomb charge, providing damage resistance buffs when teammates go invisible and refunds melee energy on invisibility activations. Replace Stylish Executioner with Trapper’s Ambush for this setup.
- Orpheus Rig enhances Super regeneration by rewarding you with energy from tethered enemies and can work with any of the invisibility-triggering Aspects.
If you seek alternatives for weapons, consider:
- Collective Obligation, which siphons Void debuffs from enemies.
- Graviton Lance, known for its high impact and area damage through void explosions.
For newcomers without access to these weapons or armor, starting with familiar gear while focusing on Void weapons will still provide an exhilarating Hunter experience.
TL;DR
|
Class |
Nightstalker |
|---|---|
|
Super |
Shadowshot – Deadfall |
|
Grenade |
Scatter Grenade or Suppressor Grenade |
|
Melee |
Smoke Bomb |
|
Class Ability |
Gambler’s Dodge |
|
Aspects |
Stylish Executioner, On the Prowl |
|
Fragments |
Echo of Obscurity, Echo of Harvest, Echo of Starvation, Echo of Persistence, Echo of Undermining |
|
Exotic Armor |
Gyrfalcon’s Hauberk. Alternatively: Omnioculus, Orpheus Rig |
|
Weapons |
Any Void weapon. Ideally Hard Light, Graviton Lance, or Collective Obligation |
2 Warlock
Unlimited Power!
Arc Warlocks have historically struggled with survivability and versatility, but the introduction of Ionic Sentry changes the game. This new Aspect allows you to dominate designated areas while incapacitating enemies, enabling a series of attacks that leave foes stunned.
Essentially, Ionic Sentry serves as the Warlock’s answer to the Hunter’s Gunpowder Gamble. Defeating targets with Arc weapons or abilities generates stacks that ultimately charge your Ionic Sentry, which can be deployed to blind and consistently deliver chain lightning to nearby enemies.
Each enemy struck by the Ionic Sentry grants a Bolt Charge stack, which accumulates to unleash powerful lightning strikes once you reach ten stacks.
To maximize your efficiency, equip Electrostatic Mind, which creates Ionic Traces whenever an enemy is defeated through Arc abilities or attacks. You’ll be swimming in Ionic Traces.
Here are the recommended Fragments to enhance this build:
- Spark of Resistance: Provides damage resistance when surrounded by enemies.
- Spark of Ions: Generates an Ionic Trace upon defeating enemies with Jolt or Bolt Charge.
- Spark of Discharge: Produces an Ionic Trace when an enemy is taken down with an Arc weapon, also granting a Bolt Charge stack.
- Spark of Beacons: Causes a blinding explosion with final blows from Arc special and heavy weapons.
Your choice of grenades and melee is flexible, but I recommend using the Pulse Grenade for effective lingering damage and Chain Lightning to apply Jolt disruption.
In this build, choose Chaos Reach as your Super due to its recent power upgrades.
Ima Firin’ Mah Lazer!
Geomag Stabilizers are the best Exotic armor for this setup. They not only more than double the duration of your Chaos Reach super but also grant 7% Super energy per Ionic Trace collected.
Additionally, Ionic Traces offer 12.5% grenade and melee energy as well as a 15% boost to class ability energy.
This is a build heavily focused on Arc damage, making it important to select weapons that complement this element. An excellent choice is Delicate Tomb, which offers substantial burst damage and area control, especially with the unique perks available, all while ensuring you won’t have to reload thanks to the Catalyst’s effects when collecting Ionic Traces.
While your abilities and gear synergize seamlessly, you’ll find yourself continually generating Ionic Traces and remaining practically Amped throughout your encounters.
Alternatives
If Geomag Stabilizers are out of reach, other armor options can deliver similar benefits but emphasize different aspects of the Arc Warlock’s experience.
- Fallen Sunstar enhances Ionic Traces by increasing their speed and providing greater energy gains (25% grenade and melee, 30% class ability) for you and nearby allies upon collection. This option is more suited for team play.
- Crown of Tempests offers a more passive build focused on Arc ability final blows, significantly increasing the recharge rate for your abilities based on your Conduction Tines stacks.
Players seeking alternatives who may not have access to Delicate Tomb should consider options like:
- Coldheart, an easily obtainable Exotic that generates Ionic Traces when at peak damage, and can be acquired through random drops or Xur.
- Thunderlord, another free-to-play Exotic known for its sustained damage output, available through drops or from Xur.
This build should remain effective for both new and returning players regardless of the exact gear used, as long as priority is given to building around Jolt and Ionic Trace generation.
TL;DR
|
Class |
Stormcaller |
|---|---|
|
Super |
Chaos Reach |
|
Grenade |
Pulse Grenade |
|
Melee |
Chain Lightning |
|
Class Ability |
Healing Rift |
|
Aspects |
Electrostatic Mind, Ionic Sentry |
|
Fragments |
Spark of Beacons, Spark of Resistance, Spark of Discharge, Spark of Ions |
|
Exotic Armor |
Geomag Stabilizers. Alternatively: Fallen Sunstar, Crown of Tempests |
|
Weapons |
Delicate Tomb OR Coldheart |
3 Titans
Behold, The God Of Thunder!
Arc Titans are known for being tanks in Destiny, epitomizing durability and high damage output with their thunderous punches. The newly introduced Aspect, Storm’s Keep, amplifies the Titan’s strength, making them even more formidable.
When you cast your class ability with Storm’s Keep, a unique animation takes place that generates Bolt Charge stacks for yourself and nearby allies. Additionally, positioning behind the barricade gradually increases your overall Bolt Charge stacks.
Typically, players can only unleash their max Bolt Charge stacks through ability damage; however, Storm’s Keep allows this energy to be discharged via weapon damage too.
Your Barricade can therefore draw enemy fire while enhancing your stats. To maximize Titan survivability, consider equipping Knockout, which replenishes health on melee kills, complemented by the following Fragments:
- Spark of Resistance: Increases your damage resistance when encircled by enemies.
- Spark of Ions: Generates Ionic Traces with foes defeated using Jolt or Bolt Charge.
- Spark of Discharge: Creates Ionic Traces when eliminating enemies with Arc weapons and grants Bolt Charge stacks upon collection.
- Spark of Beacons: Triggers blinding explosions upon securing kills with Arc special and heavy weaponry.
For your grenade and melee ability, feel free to select what suits you best. Personally, I find the Pulse Grenade and Thunderclap to be especially effective. That said, Ballistic Slam remains a strong choice, as it contributes to Bolt Charge accumulation based on the number of enemies hit.
For your Super ability, while Fists of Havoc is an option, Thundercrash is often preferred for its powerful single-target damage output.
Deploying Missile Barrage
This build focuses on your Class Ability, making Hazardous Propulsion a prime choice for your exotic armor. This chest piece enables you to stock up on a maximum of six Exodus Rockets from defeating enemies, launching them simultaneously when you cast your Class Ability.
Each rocket that lands amplifies damage for any “rocket-type”attack, increasing damage between 10% to 35%.This encompasses Rocket Sidearms and Launchers.
By sustaining a stream of Ionic Traces, you will continually be able to cast your Class Ability, leading to consistent Bolt Charge stacks and missile launching opportunities.
Utilizing quick add-clearing weapons, such as auto rifles (with Khvostov being a top pick), helps clear out mobs effectively, ensuring you can damage stronger foes with the amassed rockets which can also be beneficial during boss DPS scenarios.
This strategy leans towards a more measured play style; since Storm’s Keep emphasizes positioning behind your barricade for optimal Bolt Charge gain, thoughtful positioning is essential to avoid wasting barricades or exposing yourself to too much enemy fire.
Alternatives
Hazardous Propulsion can only be acquired through completion of the Final Shape campaign on Legendary difficulty or from Exotic engrams through Rahool’s focusing in the Tower. If you can’t secure this armor, consider these alternatives:
- Actium War Rig perpetually refills your auto rifle and machine gun ammo, allowing for frequent defensive lightning discharges. The Thunderlord can, in particular, exploit this for exceptional damage.
- Citan’s Ramparts have been through various nerfs and buffs, but it is currently restored to PvE efficiency, enabling you to shoot through your Towering Barricade while providing a safe position.
While there are no specific essential weapons for this build, consider the following options to complement your playstyle:
- Indebted Kindness, an Arc-themed rocket-assisted sidearm, which is highly effective when paired with a Voltshot roll, accessible from Warlord’s Ruin.
- Grand Overture is a machine gun that can unleash a barrage of missiles after charging up to 20 stacks. Acquirable only through the Witch Queen expansion.
- Crux Termination IV offers excellent DPS with options for Reconstruction and Explosive Light. It’s obtainable as a world drop.
TL;DR
|
Class |
Striker |
|---|---|
|
Super |
Thundercrash |
|
Grenade |
Pulse Grenade |
|
Melee |
Thunderclap |
|
Class Ability |
Rally Barricade |
|
Aspects |
Knockout, Storm’s Keep |
|
Fragments |
Spark of Beacons, Spark of Resistance, Spark of Discharge, Spark of Ions |
|
Exotic Armor |
Hazardous Propulsion. Alternatively: Actium War Rig, Citan’s Ramparts |
|
Weapons |
Any rocket sidearm (e.g. Indebted Kindness), rocket launcher, or Grand Overture |
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